Strangely Enough
by fetchusacuppa
Summary: Ponyboy has returned home from 'Nam, and sits down to his first normal lunch in years.


_All characters are the property of S.E. Hinton with the waitress as an exception_

Ponyboy slid down into the seat, sighing. The leather was heated from the hazy Oklahoma afternoons. The waitress popped up, perky breasts and makeup that was smudging down her happy face. He stared at her for a minute, before ordering a Pepsi, and a slice of chocolate cake. It had been a long time since he'd had those.

"What? No fries today, Pone?" Dallas chuckled, sliding in the booth across from him. "And what th'hell are y'doing with your hair, kid? Looks ridiculous." Dallas gave a snort, and flicked out a cigarette, it hung between his lips loosely, the smoke raising up above the booth and disappearing in torrents of swirls.

Ponyboy ran his hand over his head self-consciously. "They do it when y'get submitted in the army, Dal. Dunno why they do it, it's ridiculous, it's just another way of getting to you." Johnathan Cade flounced to the seat beside Dal. A smile tugged at the edges of Ponyboy's mouth. The first true smile in several years. The waitress came back. Dallas crudely examined every inch of her body, and Ponyboy waited for the reaction that never came. She ignored Dallas. Ponyboy chuckled as she walked away.

"Real smooth, Dal." Johnny snickered. "She probably gets that look twelve times a day, and she ain't gonna give a rat's ass if you give her that same look."

Ponyboy stirred the Pepsi around, watching the bubbles raise wildly, before taking a long sip. Johnny and Dallas chattered amongst themselves, and Ponyboy was almost feeling functional when Johnny mentioned Sodapop. Pony's gut felt like a burning, hot coal had been dropped into it. He felt suddenly sick, and the sun shining through the big front window, wasn't making matters better. Dallas and Johnny looked at each other curiously, and Pony shoved a mouthful of the chocolate cake into his mouth to avoid having to say anything.

"You alright, Pone?" Johnny looked at him worriedly. Ponyboy's only response was a nod. Johnny accepted this, and sucked at the straw sticking out from the meal in front of him. Ponyboy's eyes screwed up for a second. He didn't remember either of them ordering anything, and yet a full meal sat in front of them. Both digging in eagerly. Ponyboy put it down to having been exposed to so many toxins, his memory must be on the fritz. Although... he could remember why the thought of his older brother made him sick.... Ponyboy opened his mouth to say something, but the perky-breasted waitress dropped by. From the pleasant name tag on her shirt, he could now identify her as Patty.

"Everythin' okay, hon?" Patty asked, her tone perfectly tuned to annoy and please all at the same time. Ponyboy nodded simply, and with a giggle, she left, drawing a bubble of laughter from Dallas.

"Perky Patty." Dallas ribbed Johnny with his elbow. "How'd you like somma that, Johnnycake, eh?" Johnny blushed and looked down at his plate, and stuffed fries into his mouth like it was his last meal. Again, the funny feeling rose within Ponyboy, and his solution was more chocolate cake. He gulped down some Pepsi to help unclog the mouthful of cake. He swallowed roughly. The cake was almost done, and he had polished off the Pepsi with that last gulp. He looked over to Dallas and Johnny, who were now suggesting they drop by home. They wanted to see how Darry was doing. Maybe surprise Two-Bit.

Ponyboy nodded, this seemed to be his answer to everything lately and he stood up. In seconds, Perky Patty seemed to be at his side. "Will that be all for today?" she asked, scooping up the plates before Ponyboy had a chance to actually see what she was doing.

This time, he gave a verbal relpy "Uhh... yeah, actually." He scratched at the back of his neck, fumbling with his wallet. "An' I'll cover their meals, too." he added, guesturing towards Dallas and Johnny, who were pushing each other a bit, goofing around like they used to.

Perky Pattie's ever lasting smile faltered. "Cover who's meals, darlin'?" she swung the tray to her other hip, expertly and picked up some other plates from the table next to his. Ponyboy looked up, from fishing out the money.

The seats were empty. In fact, the whole diner was empty aside from hisself, Perky Patty, and the man singing in the back. Ponyboy could only assume he was the man making the food. Ponyboy looked around for a bit, Patty's face turning from confusion to pity. Ponyboy's stomach clenched, and he felt his confusion turn to rage. He hated pity. Just because he had been to Vietnam...

"Look, sweetheart, this one's on me. Anything for a veteran." Patty sighed a bit, and moved her way across the diner. Ponyboy stood still for several minutes, staring at the seats where his closest friends had sat. His brothers had sat. He felt the illness in his stomach radiating thorugh his whole body , until it felt like he had been infected by a coldness that would never end. He really had lost them. Just like he had lost Sodapop.

He stumbled out of the diner, the bright lights forcing him to squint for a second before his eyes could adjust fully. He could remember it, now... Johnnycake had died from the fire, Dallas had lost it. Sodapop went out to war.... then he got called out and Darry hadn't spoken to him since. There was no gang anymore. Two-Bit got mixed up with the Tigers and got shot. Some kids packing heaters.... their initiation and what-not. Steve had gone off to college. Something no one expected of him, but he went on to become a diesel mechanic, supported him and Evie. Their two point five children, as well. As far as Pony knew Tim and Curly were still packed up in the jail, would be for another 5 years. Jesus Christ, his heart was pounding too fast. It was going to pop right out of her chest.

Ponyboy grabbed at his chest, and stumbled towards the road. He had to get home, he had to see Darrel. That would make things better. Slowly, he made his way to the road, looking for a taxi. His arm ached, and from there it radiated all over his body. He stood at the edge of the road, the tight, constricting feeling on his chest ebbing away for a minute. Then, it came back with a bang, he couldn't move, and he tumbled forward, onto the road.

It was strange, shouldn't he feel this? Shouldn't he feel the gravel scraping his face. No, he couldn't feel anything. The taste of the chocolate cake in his mouth was ebbing away, unnoticed by him until his mouth felt like it was jammed full of cotton balls and he couldn't actually form any sentances. His breathing was shallow, barely bringing anything in through his lungs. A few people stared down at him, yelling at him (or, at least that's what it looked like). One man knelt down, his mouth specifically forming the words "Can you hear me?".

Ponyboy stared blankly at the man, the edges of the word fading and peeling backwards to reveal a peaceful silence, and a feeling of calm. He could see his brother, and Johnny. They were smiling at him, and speaking but he wasn't close enough... he ran forward to them, suddenly feeling like he was fit enough to run a race.

It was there, on the highway in front of that dingy old diner, that Ponyboy Curtis, aged 32 died of heart failure. He wasn't remembered for his writing, or his fights in the war. He wasn't remembered for his kidness, or his creativity. He was remembered as the dead man, who blocked up the road.


End file.
